News Flash
by Sofipitch
Summary: "It's easy to forget other people suffer too." Edward nodded.


**Title:** News Flash

**Author:** Sofipitch

**Series:** preferably Manga/Brotherhood

**Word Count:** 1,237

**Rating:** PG

**Characters:** Elric bros, an OC

**Summary:** "It's easy to forget other people suffer too."

**Subject:** Prompt 174, "Oh crap, how the hell did that happen?", "News Flash"

**A/N:** Some of the information on the General Slocum disaster has been warped to fit FMA world. Details on the incident have also been edited out for I thought that they wouldn't have certain information so fast. The year the disaster took place also doesn't match.

Written for lj's FMA Fic Contest.

-X-

"Brother, why don't we stop and get some food. You need to eat dinner." Alphonse said as a small outdoor food stand caught this eye. He and Edward had just arrived in the small country city and his bullheaded brother was already trying to make his way to the library.

Edward opened his mouth to complain and say that he didn't need to eat but his stomach grumbled and beat him to the chase. He mumbled something under his breath but he sat down at the stand and picked up the menu. If he could, Alphonse would've given him a knowing look; sometimes he felt as if he were the eldest.

Edward ordered a sandwich and an iced drink and after Edward described how good the meal was (making a face when the server turned his head, telling Al the food was only ok), Alphonse politely asked if he could turn the radio to a news station. The two alchemists had been on a train for three days and Alphonse wanted to know if anything important had happened while Edward had been sleeping on the hard wooden bench.

When the old man told him to go right ahead, Al listen to the end of a broadcast about the weather and how the trains were operating before turning it up when he heard the beginning of a news broadcast.

_Today in East City, 1,700 tourists boarded the General Slocum steamboat for a trip down the East River. The St. Mark's Lutheran Church had hired the steamboat to take them on their annual church picnic._

_But as the ship was passing 90th street, at 10 AM, people reported to have seen a fire blazing in many parts of the ship, and a few reports claim to have seen the fire start in the Lamp room and spread to various locations. One of those locations being a cabin filled with gasoline._

"Oh no." Al whispered.

Edward's fork stopped midway to his mouth. He clenched his fist as he put his hand back on the table and turned his head to face the radio.

The server stopped wiping the counter and leaned his head into his palm, his face now also turned towards the radio.

_The boat finally made it to the shores right next to small city of Bronx where the citizens of Bronx tried their best to help get everyone out alive, even going as far as to form human chains to pull people out of the water._

_We have just started investigating what might have caused this incident, after searching the ship for any chance of finding people still alive inside the ship. But right now the total missing count is 1,020. We are still trying to see if we can find anyone still alive and are calling in detectives and mechanics to see what may have caused the incident and why the current death count is so high. But for now this is all we know._

Alphonse turned the volume back down as the news report changed to the government and military.

A long silence passed between the three of them before Edward finally spoke up.

"1,020 people?" Alphonse swore he saw his brother starting to shake. He decided it might be best not to say anything.

"It's not very surprising," the man said, nearly mumbled, as he started wiping the counter again.

"What do you mean it's not surprising?" Edward snarled. He put the fork he had been holding back on his plate.

"Well, you see, the General Slocum has had many problems ever since it started sailing." He wrung the cloth out over the sink before tossing it in. "Hitting sandbars and land, hitting other vessels, riots on board…the General Slocum has a long history of mishaps. I guess I knew that Slocum's last ride was going to be sometime soon. it was bound to happen."

Edward's eyes furrowed but he said nothing. He took a bite of his now-cold sandwich to keep himself busy.

Nothing else was said about the incident till Edward paid for his meal. "And what would you have done if that had been your family on the ship?" Edward asked the man.

The man raised his eyebrows at such an inappropriate question but answered it anyways. "I think, with the ships history and all, I'd try to make sure they didn't board that ship. But if they did, I guess I'd be very sad, and very disappointed. I'd wonder why it happened while my family was on board and why it couldn't have happened to someone else. But then, I guess I'd decide that would be a very selfish wish." The man looked down at Edward curiously, wondering what prompted him to ask such a question.

"Oh.", was all Edward said before turning around to leave. Alphonse wanted to ask his brother what was troubling him but he already knew the answer. It was the same question that was echoing itself and making itself known in his own mind.

"And what if it had been your family?"

Edward spun around on the balls of his feet and faced the man. He took one look at Alphonse before tucking his head in his chest. His fists clenched, and then unclenched once he gave his answer.

"I don't think I could live with that. Knowing that, they died such horrible deaths, burning or drowning."

Alphonse hated the sadness on his brother face as he said that, as he looked directly at him.

A small bittersweet smile crossed the old man's face. "I bet many others are thinking the same thing right now. But there's only so much you can do, if they had more information they would've told you on the radio. No use panicking, I guess, that'll get you nowhere."

Al wondered who the man was trying to reassure.

Alphonse bid the man a good night. The man smiled and thanked him and his brother for the conversation. Edward just nodded.

Edward walked ahead of Alphonse, for some reason wanting to get away from the old man quickly. But just before he was out of hearing range, Alphonse heard the old man talking to himself.

"Knowing her, she'll have probably swam herself to safety while carrying ten people on her back." The old man smiled at the cloth he had thrown in the sink. "She'd laugh and call me crazy for worrying."

When Alphonse caught up with Edward and told him what he heard the old man say, Edward nodded saying, "I always wonder how people cope, without reassurance to know that their loved ones are okay. Living with their loved ones dying around you, but not having alchemy to try to bring them back." He gave Al a sad smile. "Bring her back was our reassurance."

Alphonse sometimes wished they didn't have alchemy, so that they could have been as collected as the old man.

"Sometimes it's easy to forget other people suffer too." Alphonse said. Edward nodded.

They walked for a few more minutes in silence, searching for an inn, before Ed broke that silence. "I hope we don't see that crazy old man again tomorrow."

Al looked down at Ed, who seemed to be looking around for any hotels or inns to stay in. "Why not brother?"

"Because I hope that he's on a train, ready to be reunited with his family members."

Alphonse silently agreed.


End file.
